High school is a time of great physical, mental, and emotional changes in young people. Some students experience a one-foot height change, others an epiphany. These changes occur throughout high school, but can be made quickly under the right circumstances. In the novel A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Phineas is another victim of high school changes, catalyzed by an injury. He begins his teenage life normally, as an exceptional athlete, but a tragic "accident" destroys his chances of living such a normal life and puts Finny in a state of denial. However, he eventually accepts his reality by breaking out of his dreamer mentality. The progression of Finny's mental state is indicative of how trauma can catapult the normally disturbing growth of high school youth into a state of disbelief and denial, detaching from reality. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Finny begins his life at Devon School as a dreamer. He has a free spirit, creates activities and does strange things for fun. As Finny tries on unusual clothes, he ponders "...what if I looked like a fairy to everyone" (17). Phineas doesn't really care what others think of him; he's just curious for his own good. This dressing scene and the following pages where she wears the pink shirt demonstrate her carefree attitude towards life. After swimming in the school pool and breaking a record, Phineas observes how "The only real swimming is in the ocean" (37). He is unimpressed by breaking the school record, but longs to swim in the ocean, as if doing so is somehow a greater feat. He doesn't pay attention to the fact that he is breaking an important rule and may even skip class. The early chapters of A Separate Peace highlight Phones' dreamer mentality in other ways. Furthermore, Finny has no visible fear of things that others commonly fear. For example, the dreaded tree is not a problem in Finny's mind. He jumps in first, saying, "here's my contribution to the war effort" (8). Others in his group of friends tremble at the sight of the tall tree. Gene is also skeptical of the tree's safety at first, only jumping after Finny goes first for reassurance. Phineas chooses what needs to be done and sticks to his decisions without fear of failure. To save Gene from falling from the tree, Finny "shot and grabbed my [Gene's] arm, and once he regained his balance, the panic immediately disappeared" (24). He does what needs to be done immediately, without questioning himself in the process. Finny is not afraid of things that could be serious problems for others. It is this lack of fear that makes his injury so tragic. After his fall from the limb, Phineas denies that Gene jumped the limb and disavows the existence of a raging war. It seems to Gene that Finny really believes that war is a joke invented to subjugate people. When talking about other conspiracies, Finny states that "they couldn't use that trick forever, so for us in the 1940s they made up this fake war" (107). Phineas obviously denies the existence of war with his internal logic, appearing sensible and realistic. This constant self-justification is proof that Finny actually doesn't even believe the theories himself. He is simply using them as a shield to avoid his own reality. He states this theory again when Mr. Ludsbury talks about the war; Finny explains that Ludsbury believes in war because he is "Too thin. Of course" (114). This statement dates back to.